California Judge Dismisses Raiders' Suit

Published 8:00 pm, Sunday, April 20, 2003

A state judge on Monday dismissed a suit by the Oakland Raiders seeking to prevent the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers from wearing their uniforms for games in California because they allegedly violate the Raiders' trademark rights.

A Santa Clara County judge did not rule on the merits of the case, but rather said it belonged in federal court. Raiders officials said Monday they were exploring their legal options.

The Raiders claimed Tampa Bay's pirate logo is too similar to that of Oakland's. And the Raiders objected to the Panthers' uniforms because two colors, silver and black, match those of their team.

Papers the Raiders filed in the San Jose case say the Buccaneers' logo "is likely to dilute the distinctive quality of the Raiders' mark, thereby lessening its capacity to identify the Raiders, and causing irreparable harm that cannot adequately be compensated by an award of damages."

NFL attorneys argued there will always be overlap among logos and colors.